POLICY ALTERNATIVES TO SEPARATING WOMEN IN PRISON AND THEIR INFANTS

Objective: To explore state and federal policies that provide alternatives to separating biological mothers and their infants and young children during incarceration. We will discuss three key policy alternatives, including prison nursery programs, pre-trial diversion, and community-based alternatives to incarceration; evidence for these policies; and implications for future research. Background: Incarcerated women represent the fastest-growing subset of the overall prison population within the United States. Incarcerated women are disproportionately from communities of color, mothers to young children, and primary caregivers, and it is estimated that approximately 6% are pregnant upon admission to a detention facility. Each year, thousands of women are incarcerated while pregnant, and this population endures considerable health disparities and adverse pregnancy outcomes including miscarriages, medically induced abortions, ectopic pregnancy, and neonatal death, or death of a newborn within the first 28 days of life. Following birth, most women experience the abrupt removal and separation of their newborns. Recently, there have been attempts to identify ways to prevent the separation of mothers and their newborns. Through a systematic search of all state and federal laws, we identified that 12 states within the United States have laws that specifically outline alternatives to incarceration for pregnant and parenting women and their biological children. These alternatives to incarceration include prison nursery programs, pre-trial diversion, and community-based reintegration programs. The evidence acknowledging the importance of fostering maternal-child bonds and human connection is substantial; however, policy alternatives to separation are limited within prison and jail facilities and programs. In this chapter, we will (a) describe all state and federal policies from our systematic search that provide alternatives to the separation of biological mothers and their infants and young children during a period of incarceration, including prison nursery programs, pre-trial diversion, and community-based alternatives to incarceration; (b) review existing research on the benefits and barriers to these policy alternatives; and (c) discuss the implications for future research, practice, and policies impacting pregnant and postpartum people in prison and their infants.